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United Arab Emirates Nominates Lana Nusseibeh for UN Secretary-General Amid Security Council Uncertainty
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UAE formally nominates Lana Nusseibeh for UN Secretary-General. Nusseibeh is UAE Minister of State for Foreign Affairs and former UN ambassador.
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Al-Monitor“the prospect of the organization’s first female leader have emerged as central themes.”
“though Nusseibeh said she was not running on her gender.”
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UAE backs Lana Nusseibeh
The United Arab Emirates nominated Lana Nusseibeh for the post of United Nations secretary-general as the selection process faced uncertainty among Security Council members. Lana Nusseibeh, who is 48 and currently the UAE’s Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, said, “It’s clear that today we need a secretary-general that can recommit to the future of multilateralism and the future of the United Nations as a problem-solver rather than as a spectator to the world’s crises.” The UAE’s candidacy arrived as the Security Council’s informal polls had not produced consensus, with the latest round leaving candidates opposed by at least two permanent members.
The nomination also came with a stated timeline, as Antonio Guterres’s term was described as ending on December 31, 2026, with the successor assuming duties from January 2027. The UAE’s entry was framed as a response to the need for diplomacy and results, with the selection process continuing in the coming weeks after the most recent indicative vote held on October 16.
Security Council votes stall
The selection process remained stalled because none of the competing candidates secured consensus within the Security Council, where the five permanent members hold veto power. A senior official in the UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs and former ambassador to the UN, Lana Nusseibeh, entered the race after the UAE announced her candidacy on Wednesday, October 21, 2026. The process continued through indicative votes, with the latest round described as leaving candidates unable to avoid negative votes from one of the five permanent members with veto power among the 15 Security Council members.
The UN Secretariat coverage said the next indicative vote had been postponed to the following week, giving permanent members additional time to review the new candidacy or seek agreement around another contender. The race also included other named contenders, including Costa Rican Rebeca Grynspan, Guyanese Carolyn Rodrigues-Birkett, and Argentine Rafael Grossi, as the UAE’s late entry reshuffled the field.
Regional support and stakes
Albania’s Prime Minister Edi Rama said Albania fully backs Lana Nusseibeh’s candidacy and wrote on X that “Lana Nusseibeh’s candidacy, from the United Arab Emirates, for the post of Secretary-General of the United Nations offers a new beginning.” Rama added that he could not imagine “a better hope for the United Nations than a woman of such stature,” linking support to the importance of electing a woman to lead the organization. The nomination also carried broader diplomatic stakes, as the UAE’s candidacy was described as potentially reshuffling the cards due to rapprochement between Abu Dhabi and the administration of Donald Trump.
The UAE’s campaign was also tied to humanitarian diplomacy, because the News Mobile account said Nusseibeh played a role in advancing Resolution 2720 by arranging a visit for council members to the Rafah crossing during the Gaza war. The selection was portrayed as hinging on Security Council approval, with the i24NEWS account stating that she would need at least nine of the 15 members to vote in her favour and no veto from the five permanent members.